travelling.... the friendship edition.

packing for a trip overseas can be stressful at times.

what to bring? how's the weather over there? even though I am lucky enough to travel every month, filling the suitcase and trying not to forget the essentials are always a struggle for me. unnecessary things like huge shampoo bottles use up space in your suitcase and forgetting something can be fatal. however, when you're travelling to see friends, and by friends I mean the real friends, not the acquaintances (it will make more sense throughout this piece), packing isn't actually that hard.

last month I flew over the ocean to see my friends in NYC, flying from hamburg, germany. two days prior I had dinner with my friend and she said something along the lines of "so I'm guessing you'll spend tomorrow packing for NYC..?". I came to realise that flying to NYC is a pretty long journey, and some people would probably spend a day folding their clothes and organising their toiletries. I however, was flying to stay with my friend, a real friend. so even though I had an 8 hour flight to another continent ahead of me, I spent about 20 minutes packing because what do I really need besides my passport, my phone and my credit card?

packing to stay with a friend is very different from general packing, no matter how long the journey- let me explain.

travelling.... the friendship edition.

for me, my inner thought process while packing often shows me how good of a friend I am travelling to. do I need to bring comfy clothes like sweaters? they take away so much room in my suitcase. definitely not- my friend has that one sweater that I wore last time. toiletries? I mean, I'll bring my own toothbrush... I guess. she'll share toothpaste, hairbrush, shampoo, hair dryer and deodorant with me for sure. pyjamas? nope, I know she knows I'm taking her sweatpants that I wore last time. sunglasses? maybe? what if I need tampons? I'm sure she has some. ok, at least I'll bring my own razor.

I realised while packing for NYC that I'm going to see my friend, and while she might live on another continent, I'm packing carelessly like I'm going to have a sleepover at my friend's house next door. and that, to me, is what makes travelling to see friends, the real friends, so special. they are your home away from home and you don't need to bring anything. packing to see your friend isn't stressful at all. that's how you know it's real!